AUTHOR: Sarah Rochester
EMAIL: sarah@pulltheplug.nu
CATEGORY: JC
RATING: NC-17
SPOILERS: None
DISCLAIMER: ER and itís characters are owned by Constant C Productions,
Amblin Entertainment, NBC, and Warner Brothers. Jolie Adams and other unfamiliar
characters are of my creation.
NOTE: I would love to extend my dearest thanks to three wonderful people: Lara,
Victoria, and Andrew. Without them, I would be stuck in a rut with this fan
fic, thus you (the readers) wouldnít read it. Lara, thank you for helping me
pick out a wonderful (and might I add fitting) title for this story. I think
The Untitled John Carter Story wasnít very fitting! Andrew, my dear,
thanks for letting me drill on you on medical questions and the like. I totally
appreciate it and thank you for letting me copy your current events during Mr.
Urbanís class. And Victoria, I must thank you the most for all that you have
done for me: answering my questions, talking to me online, and helping revise
some of this jumble of writing. You all rock! The song "Emily" is
written by Jewel Kilcher and is featured in the movie The Crossing Guard
and "Canít Fight the Moonlight" is written by Diane Warren and sung
by Leann Rimes (featured on the Coyote Ugly soundtrack and movie). "On
& On" is written by myself (Sarah Rochester). The last song is "Say
It Again" by Precious uk.

Chapter One

"Mark! Got one in Curtain 5." said Malik as he whizzed
passed Dr. Greene and tossed a chart at him. "Good luck!"

Mark smiled weakly and made his way to the exam room. He almost
bumped into a man waiting for his son to get a cast on his arm. Mark apologized
and walked into the exam room. He glanced at the chart.

Female. 23. Laceration to lower right arm.

Mark looked at the young woman sitting on the table, looking
around the room in curiosity. "Hello. Iím Dr. Greene." He looked at
the chart. "You must be Jolie Adams." He said this looking at the
brunette young woman.

She nodded. "Yup. That would be me, doctor."

Mark looked at her. She gave him a friendly smile. "Letís
look at your arm, miss." She extended her injured arm and flinched as Mark
inspected the wound. "Can you tell me what happened?"

Jolie nodded. "I was ambushed by an angry guitar string."
replied the young woman in a matter of fact tone. She gave a final nod as Mark
looked at her, bewildered.

"Pardon?" asked Mark.

Jolie looked at him. "My guitar string snapped when I was
tuning it."

"Oh." Mark replied, nodding his head. "Hobby?"

Jolie shook her head. "No. Iím a songwriter and a bar wench."
She gasped a little bit when Mark touched the wound again. "Does it need
stitches?"

"Iím afraid so." Mark said. "Songwriter, huh?"

Jolie beamed. "Yeah." She watched Mark get a needle.
"Whatís that?"

"Iím giving you a local to numb you so I can stitch that
guy up." Mark answered. He fiddle with the needle to put a anasectic inside.
"I hope you arenít afraid of needles."

Jolie gulped. "A little." She looked at Mark. "Itís
not a bad thing, though. You need to be afraid of something, right?"

"I guess."

"My uncleÖ" Jolie jumped as he gave her the shot.
"Öis a doctor. In the Psych. ward at UCLA Medical. Dr. Cary Thorton."

Mark pondered the name. "Sounds familiar."

"Heís a sweet guy. Really tall, blonde hair, brown eyes."
Jolie watched Mark. "If you see his face, you would recognize him. You
know the type of people who blend into the crowd?"

Mark shook his head. "Iím afraid I donít." He looked
up at Jolie.

"Heís like that. But his laugh, that is what separates
him from the rest. Itís so loud and warm. Like listening to the Sex Pistols
on a rainy day."

Mark chuckled. "Interesting combination."

"Hey, people relax their own way, Dr. Greene." Jolie remarked with
a smile. "How do you relax?"

Mark shrugged. "My fiancée and I watch a Disney
cartoon and drink coffee."

"I wish I could do that with someone. I have to settle
for the Sex Pistols or telephone calls from my eccentric father."

Mark laughed. "What does your eccentric father do?"

"Heís works for the government."

Mark nodded. "Which part?"

"Legislature." Jolie answered. "Why are you asking
so many questions?"

Mark looked at her. "It helps keep the patientís mind off
what the doctor is doing."

"Aw." Jolie replied. "They have alcohol for that."

+ + +

John Carter ran across the snow-covered parking lot, hoping
not to get a chill or getting hit by a car by doing so. He smiled as he came
into the Ambulance port and strolled into the Admissions area of the hospital.

Today was going to be a good day.

+ + +

"And thatís how I came to Chicago." said Jolie as
Mark finished up the last stitch. She looked at her arm and smiled. "Not
bad, Dr. Greene. It kinda looks like this headband I had in high school."

Mark smiled. "Now, I want you to change the dressing twice
a day." said Mark as he covered the stitches with gaze and tape. "Itís
important to keep it as clean as possible. An infection isnít the best way to
spend a rainy day."

Jolie nodded. "When should I come back to get the stitches
taken out?"

"About two weeks. Iíll give you my number if you have any
questions or if the laceration begins to swell or have discharge." Mark
said as he scribbled down his pager number. He handed Jolieís sidepack to her.
"Do you want me to call a cab?"

Jolie nodded as they began to leave the room and walk down the
hallway.

"You stay right here." Mark said. "Iíll call
a cab for you."

Jolie looked around the ER as she waited for Dr. Greene to come
back with news of a cab coming for her. She spotted a young man. He was tall
and well built. His had brown hair and he was talking to two other males. Could
it be? thought Jolie. She looked around, checking to see if Dr. Greene was
near by.

He wasnít.

Jolie walked over to the man. He wore a jacket, khaki pants,
a sky blue button down shirt and a white shirt underneath. He laughed with the
two other males. One of them noticed her. He nudged the man and he looked at
her.

"Carter, hot one at twelve oíclock." said Dave Malucci.

John turned his head and saw a very attractive girl walking
towards him. She was wearing a pair of dark demin jeans, a black shirt, boots,
and a navy blue peacoat with a cream colored scarf. Her brown hair was in a
messy bun, which made her look like a college student. "May I help you?"

"Are you who I think you are?"

He smiled. "Depends on who you want me to be."

"Are you Andrew Walker? The record executive?"

He looked at his friends, then nodded. "Yeah."

"Iím Jolie Adams." She extended her good hand. "Iím
a songwriter. Actually, I just moved here from Chico, California. Small ass
town. Very boring. Good college, though."

"Nice to meet you."

Jolie reached into her sidepack and pulled out a tape. "This
is my demo." She handed it to John.

Malik and Jerry chuckled. John looked at them, then Jolie. "Um..."

"I know this is probably rude, but I really want to be
someone. Not some bumass house wife with twenty kids. Besides, only Mormons
do that. Iím Jewish. We believe in birth control." Jolie injected.

John nodded and tapped the tape with his fingers. "When
I get home tonight, Iíll be sure to listen to this." He looked at Jolie.

Dave and Malik chuckled, again.

John shot them a look. "I usual would reject this kind
of stuff, but I have a strong feeling about you, young lady." said John.
He shook the tape in his hand, trying not to laugh.

Kerry Weaver came down the hallway. "CARTER!"

John winced as Malik and Dave rushed off. Jolie looked at Kerry,
then Johnís worried expression.

"You know you arenít aloud to hit on patients." said
Kerry. She looked at Jolie.

"Miss, I was talking business with Mr. Walker." replied
Jolie. She extended her hand. "Iím Jolie Adams."

"Business? What kind?" asked Kerry as she shook Jolieís
hand. She leaned on her crutch. Kerry looked at John, then Jolie. "Walker?"

John flushed as he knew that he would never live this down.

"Yeah. His name is Andrew Walker, the record executive."
Jolie smiled. "He says that he has a strong feeling about me." added
Jolie.

Kerry frowned. "Miss Adams, that dummel idiot that stands
before us is Dr. John Carter, who is about to get himself into deep shit."

Jolie looked at John, then Kerry. "Oh dear." She made
a mad dash out of the ER, leaving her tape with Carter. She passed Mark, who
watched John taking off after her.

Mark walked up to Kerry. "What was that all about?"

"Ask John when he comes back, if she doesnít kill him first."

"Wait!" yelled John as he almost slipped on the wet
pavement.

Jolie stopped running when she got to the curb. "What!"

"Look, Iím sorry." John said, breathlessly. He took
in air and looked at Jolie. "Really. I am."

Jolie rolled her eyes. "The hell you are!" She began
to walk down the sidewalk.

"Seriously. I am!"

Jolie glared at him. "Go get stabbed or something, you
shitfaced asshole!" Jolie hailed a cab.

John stood in the snow, dumbfounded. He watched her pull away
in the cab. John looked at the tape in his arm and tapped it against his other
hand as he walked back to the ER.